This invention relates generally to flatwork ironers, and more specifically pertains to control means for use in conjunction with lubricating sprayer for periodic and controlled deposition of lubricating wax onto the chests and gap pieces of a flatwork ironer, at the time and in the amount which is necessary to ensure proper waxing.
A laundry flatwork ironer is an industrial machine which incorporates one or more rollers, that consist of large cylinders, usually one for each chest, trough or bed, and which may be of varying length, but usually approximately ten feet long, and anywhere from one to four feet in diameter, although other sizes may have been made or are available. The roll is most often perforated with holes and covered with a spring system in addition to a fabric called padding. At one end of the roll there is usually an opening onto which is attached a vacuum motor, with the idea of the motor being to draw a vacuum from the roll that helps evacuate any moisture evaporated during processing and ironing of flatwork items, such as sheets, bedspreads, and the like. The idea of the springs and padding is to provide a cushioning against which the articles being ironed can rest, as well as to provide sufficient friction to achieve a pulling of the flatwork articles being ironed through the ironer during its usage. Such an ironer, which is frequently called a mangle, may consist of one or more rolls, as previously stated. Each roll rotates in a half-cylinder chamber, sometimes called a trough, bed, or chest, and which is normally heated with high pressure, approximtely 125 psi steam, or other heating medium, such as hot oil. The concaved portion of the trough or chest is highly polished, and the roll is sized to fit reasonably tightly and contiguously into the trough when in its operative position. The function of the ironer is to simultaneously dry and press, or iron, the damp, clean flat pieces, such as sheets or table linens, as they pass through the ironer.
To operate the aforesaid machine, the article to be ironed is placed onto a flat feed table, which consists of a conveyor, generally as wide as the mangle itself, and which is made of fabric belts which move towards the first roll and trough at a speed similar to the surface speed of the rotating roll. The piece being ironed is ultimately grabbed by the friction of the padding of the roll, and is pulled at roll speed down into the concaved trough or chest, and out of the backside of the same. Because the inner surface of the chest is highly polished, as aforesaid, and maintained very hot, the article is instantaneously dried, and ironed, as it moves between the roll and the chest. As the flat piece exits the chest, some type of device, normally guide tapes, are used to strip it off from the roll, and to prevent its going all the way around the roll again as it rotates.
The action of a piece being ironed in the above manner creates a great deal of friction and static electricity. To minimize the friction and to facilitate the smooth travel of a linen piece through the ironer, waxes have traditionally been used and applied to the chests, to achieve their lubrication. Traditionally, parafin waxes have been crushed or chipped into flakes, and then spread by hand between two layers of cloth, generally called a wax cloth, and run through the ironer just like a piece of flatwork being ironed. Waxes, having a paste consistency, also have been employed for the same purpose. The heat from the trough causes the wax to melt and leaves a residue of wax on the surface of the chests. This residue lasts for a variant amount of time, depending upon the ironing speeds, the temperatures involved, and other factors, but usually re-waxing is required every couple of hours, or so.
Many variety of parafin waxes are still available and used today, as are other types of lubricating means, such as one identified as Karagami, which is believed to be a honey residue, in addition to other types of mineral waxes that are available.
The waxing problem of the flatwork ironer, or mangle, is becoming a significantly greater problem today because of the newer developments being generated in the laundry field. Originally all textiles were natural ones, both for the pieces being ironed, in addition to the roll padding itself. Soaps were of a natural origin, and ironing speeds and temperatures were maintained at a lower level. But, today the usage of synthetic fibers for both articles being ironed, and for the padding, creates additonal problems. In addition, the use of much higher ironing temperatures in the processing of this type of technology, in order to attain higher speeds, achieved through more automatic feeding and folding devices that are used in conjunction with the flatwork ironer, generates additional problems. Increased speeds for operations of the flatwork ironer creates more static electricity, which does have some detrimental effect on the folding machinery used in conjunction with the ironer, and somewhat incidentally on the controls of the apparatuses. But, generally, the static electricity causes the ironed flatwork piece to levitate, or stick or adhere to the conveying means of the folder, in such a way that the piece does not fold properly or simply jams in the folder, usually requiring a temporary shut-down of production until such time as the jammed piece has been extricated and removed. And, such a condition always requires that the jammed piece be reprocessed, and sometimes, the flatwork piece involved is destroyed in the process. Also, it is possible to build up so much friction and static electricity in the ironer that it completely stops the machine, which can sometimes cause a blowing of fuses, breakage of circuit breakers, or an overloading of the drive motor itself.
To combat the foregoing problem, the operators of said flatwork ironers begin a vicious cycle of waxing, re-waxing, cleaning and waxing again. Traditional waxes begin to yellow and carbonize at temperatures that are somewhat lower than the ironing temperatures themselves. Re-waxing covers this carbonized residue with another layer of wax, which itself begins once again to carbonize. Eventually this residue must be removed by mechanical means, or perhaps through the application of harsh and more caustic chemicals, for the purpose of desolving such accumulated residue. Or, such mechanical means as steel mesh, steel wool, or emory cloth are currently being used and passed through the ironer to achieve such cleaning. These type of devices, as in the instance of mechanical means, create minuscule scratches in the metal of the trough, while the chemicals have a tendency to dissolve the residue, exposing the microscopic pores in the chest, all of which has a tendency to make the chest exhibit a roughened surface, that just provides and creates new places and locations for the build-up of residue wax to occur, with the overall problems being intensified, requiring more and additional waxing.
New and improved waxes have been generated and developed for usage in these ironing devices, but such waxes generally are not very susceptible for automatic dispensing, as through spray means, and as a result, mechanizing the spraying and cleaning process has not progressed to the extent that such is desired. Formulations have been developed incorporating polyolefins, in order to provide better facility for usage and the application of such waxes to the mangles of a flatwork ironer. But, even with the usage of these newer formulations of high-temperature waxes, the time and labor consuming process of passing a wax cloth through the ironer every couple of hours was still required. And, utilizing that old process for application of the wax to the flatwork ironer still entails the consumption of from ten to fifteen minutes each time, meaning that the entire ironer crew is non-productive during that cleaning cycle, further meaning that a standard crew of from two to six people are left idle, at frequent periodic times throughout the work shift. In addition, the lost volume of work turnout can accumulate to approximately one-sixteenth of a work day, or more, due to such downtime. Furthermore, anti-static agents present in the newer formulations dissipate much faster than the lubricating properties do, and as a result, static electric attractions, in the flatwork linens, and also which build up in the ironers, and their subsequent folders, still presents a significant problem.
Thought has been given towards providing an automatic remedying of some of the problems associated with ironer lubricating, and such can be seen in the U.S. Pat. No. 4,498,254, to Schadlich. That patent discloses an apparatus for decreasing the friction of pieces of wet or damp laundry, as they pass through an ironer, and as shown in that particular disclosure, a liquid lubricating agent incorporating a silicone oil or silicone oil emulsion is passed through a spray means for application directly onto a flatwork ironer. But, the application of the spray means was done specifically as an atomized composition, meaning that the light application of a mist onto the rollers may not be significantly enough to provide and afford the type of lubricating necessary, in addition to achieving anti-friction, anti-static, and to effect cleaning of the trough, as required.
Other spray devices utilized for application of oiling material, in the particular instance to a metal stock, is shown in the United States patent to Glanzer, U.S. Pat. No. 3,736,902.